Preventative care is very important to us at Total Dental so we use the latest technology to thoroughly assess your individual requirements and provide a solution that will help to maintain a healthy smile.

A critical part of modern dentistry is the complete adherence to infection control procedures.

Everything that we use in your mouth is either disposable or sterilised by our state of the art autoclave.

The autoclave is tested and documented every time it is used to ensure instruments are sterile.

The autoclave has a unique way of sterilising by creating a vacuum prior to the sterilising process, thus killing bacteria and viruses that may be resistant to other types of sterilisation techniques.

Also our unique dental chair is not only comfortable and ergonomically designed, but it incorporates a unique water sterilisation process, so that the water that reaches the mouth in contamination free.

The importance of regular check ups cannot be emphasised enough, if problems are detected early your treatment is likely to be a lot easier, cheaper and a lot less complex.

Regular dental check ups are the best way to prevent tooth decay and gum disease they also enable us to diagnose any early problems you may have such as diseases of the soft tissue, palate and jaw.

All new patients have a no obligation free consultation. During this visit we will assess your dental needs and give you an overview of positive treatment options. We will endeavour to answer all your questions on this visit as it is tailored to assist you to understand areas of concern or discussion of cosmetic alternatives. In addition, video imaging on LCD screens may be used to help you visualise areas of importance.

All procedural costs and possible payment plans are thoroughly discussed prior to any work commencing.

Please note that definitive diagnosis will often involve radiographic analysis which is not included as part of the free visit.

Your gums and supporting bone structure are the foundation for your teeth therefore it is crucial that they are looked after well so that they are able to support all your teeth and help you to eat, speak, laugh and have a lovely smile.

Tooth brushing, flossing, a healthy diet and visiting your dentist for regular checkups are the most important aspects of good oral hygiene.

Sugar in your diet plays a major role in tooth decay; a sugary snack between meals launches an acid attack on your tooth enamel that can last up to 20 minutes.

Brushing is imperative to preventing dental problems, most of us do it but few of us do it for long enough or effectively enough.

Flossing between your teethis important for reaching the spots that your tooth brush cannot; if you do not floss you are leaving up to 35% of each tooth uncleaned.

Shiny, puffy gums that bleed when you brush or floss and persistent bad breath are all signs of gum disease. This is caused by calculus, a hardened calcium build-up that is formed by a white sticky substance called plaque. If this is not cleaned off by brushing and flossing, gum disease will develop and if left untreated it will lead to tooth loss.

Interdental cleaning or flossing is important to do correctly and thoroughly as it is cleaning areas that your toothbrush can not reach, keeps your gums healthy and your breath fresh.

Many people have problems with flossing their teeth, so we have included an easy step by step process for all our patients to use as a guide:

1. Take a decent length of floss about 40cm and wrap it around your middle fingers, leaving 5cm in the middle.

2. With your thumbs an index fingers hold the floss taut, gently sliding it down between your teeth.

3. Curve floss around each tooth and gently slide it up and down each tooth, make sure you carefully go down below the gum line, use a new section of the floss on each tooth.

For best results when brushing:

1. Brush twice daily with a tooth brush that has soft bristles and is the correct size for your mouth letting you reach all the way to your back teeth. Don’t forget to brush your tongue!

2. Brush every tooth surface in a circular motion, for approximately 3 minutes, don’t scrub.

3. Use fluoride toothpaste to help prevent tooth decay.

Regular radiographs (x-rays) are essential for a high standard of dental care and definitive diagnosis.

We can take a full mouth radiograph (OPG) as a general scan of the teeth and jaws. This allows us to investigate and localise unerupted teeth (eg: wisdom teeth) and retained roots, the area around the roots of the teeth, sinuses, TMJ and general pathology of the jaw.

Smaller radiographs can be taken to investigate the crowns of the teeth, interdental bone and also the periapical regions. These smaller films are essential for early detection of tooth decay and investigation of existing restorations.

To ensure your mouth guard is the perfect fit and gives you the full protection you need, we will custom make it by taking detailed impressions of your mouth.

We will then provide you with a mouthguard of single, double or triple thickness depending on if you are playing in a contact sport or non contact sport.

Our mouthguards are resilient, durable, tear resistant, snug fitting and comfortable. The design is so that they will not restrict your speech or breathing.

We can provide you with colours of your choice and a box to store it in on completion.

These are made for the treatment of mild to severe grinding and clenching which mainly occurs at night, this may be causing damage to your teeth by wearing them down, chipping fillings or causing jaw and joint problems. The temporo-mandibular joint or the jaw joint is the most complex joint in the human body and headaches is one of the most common complaints of those who suffer from various types of TMJ problems.